Something akin to prohibition – outlawing alcohol from 1920 to 1933 – is happening in California. Other states are thinking about it. Word is these states are all planning – bless their hearts – to ban the sale of gas-fueled cars in a dozen years, by 2035.
I can see it now, can’t you? While folks in Montana, Florida, Texas, and Maine drive SUVs over mountains in snow, wind, heat, and hurricanes, California and other forward-banning states will bask in the re-discovered glory of Maoist Peking (now Beijing) circa 1965, pedaling bicycles in happy herds along formerly car-filled streets, pretending electric scooters are powered by the sun, filling up at electric pumps on the fossil-power grid.
Living the dream, Californians who stay for the 2035 show, will get Flower Power 2.0. Nirvana usually falls short but cycling and walking will make family trips very different.
Californians who stay will get the satisfaction of saying, once again, they beat Trump. They will swap long vacations by car for cycling to local parks, and camping with the homeless population. Today 160,000 homeless Californians populate public parks, about the number of California’s fossil fuel jobs that should vanish by 2035.
To assure parks are not empty, California also has two million illegal aliens – or undocumented non-citizens – with more invited. This too is the product of forward-thinking liberal policies.
So, it seems California is in the process of “reimagining” the world as a place where big, strong, fast, machismo gas-powered cars are banished – replaced by Utopia. As in China, cyclists will carry umbrellas to stave off global calamities with no power windows. Someone clever will put solar cells on the umbrellas, further cooling the earth.
One Caution – even modern China’s cycling umbrella industry has hit bumps. Companies that tried “umbrella sharing” (like scooters) found it hard, since not everyone shares, even in a Communist country.
Never mind, Utopia will come. Diesel trucks will vanish, ushering in what historians will dub the Great Rickshaw Renaissance, tens of tons of heavy goods – especially those wind turbines, solar panels, bales of kale (harvested by solar or cycling combines) being towed by beefy rickshaw drivers.
California will push the long-overdue reversal of Henry Ford’s inventions, the combustion engine, and the four-wheeled car. One can imagine the competition for energy-saving, two-wheeled cycles replaced by unicycles, and ride-sharing on five-seated cycles up San Francisco’s hills. The future is coming!
People will wear Wright Brothers’ shirts, not because the clever Kitty Hawk brothers pioneered gas-guzzling flight – but to celebrate their real accomplishment of running any early bicycle shop.
Statues of Henry Ford and those who drove gas-powered cars, trucks, trains, tractors, or airplanes will be taken down – to applause. Apologetic speeches for car driving will be made by legislators. Only John Kerry’s statue will still stand, as he always took a bicycle on his plane. If there is no statue to him, they will put one up – riding a bicycle.
Yes, sometimes you do not realize you are in the presence of the future, even though you stand right there. Imagine bringing Communist China’s eco-streets to California, allowing the state to outdistance China itself – now mysteriously producing two and half times all US emissions.
As car-buying increases in China – 281 million cars sold in 2021, just 2.9 million of those electric – the whole world may flip. Of course, making things easier, Chinese buyers are not allowed to ask, “Where does power come from?” or “Are these really running on coal power off the big grid?”
Yes, life is mysterious, wonderful, and never more magically nonsensical than in that high rent, high tax, and no gas (except for cows) California. The aim is to be done with gas-powered cars as soon as possible, which will be good for everyone, since all that unused fossil fuel can be sold to China or redirected to the power grid, finally bringing down gas prices outside California.
Californians will lead the way, showing America how to be economical, spending money on taxes, massages, suntans, social media, and more taxes. Why? Because California’s 54-cent gas tax, which presently generates 8.8 billion dollars for the state, will suddenly vanish. Poof!
As people bad at pedaling flee the State, desperate for something less like China and more like America, there will be lots of land for those who stay and lots of new taxes to cheerfully pay.
The whole thing seems better than prohibition in 1920 since it is far harder to build a gas-guzzling car in your backyard still than a quart of moonshine. But count on this: Politicians – practiced in enforcing mask mandates – will be looking from air-conditioned gas-powered cars.
Yes, sometimes politicians, especially those from California’s Democratic caucus, get ahead of everyone. If you can ban gas-powered cars, what can’t you ban? Think about it, the future is coming – as Mao predicted. And you will be able to say you were here when they hit the gas!
Scrap my gears and call me rusty, but California and other states are racing toward a future without gas-fueled cars. They’re pedaling toward a utopian dream where electric scooters roam the streets and umbrellas double as solar panels to save the world. While some may cheer for this eco-friendly vision, others might find themselves stuck in a rickshaw renaissance, towing wind turbines and kale bales up San Francisco’s hills. It’s a peculiar twist in the automotive tale: the combustion engine becomes a relic, and bicycles reign supreme. As the world watches, it’s clear that California’s journey down this path is bound to be quite the spectacle.
Another great article outlining the stupidity of Gavin Newsom and the Democrat’s in general!
So they want you to give up gas powered cars just like they want you to give up guns… So only the “benevolent” government will have gas and guns. But you will enjoy walking… back and forth in your cell.
The battery technology isn’t currently there for widespread use of electric cars. They can’t compete without subsidies. There is a group of drivers that could use electric cars but even then only as a second vehicle. Can you imagine only having an electric car when you need to evacuate a storm?
I love the wry humor in this article. It is sad day for Californians; of course, just another in a long line of sad days. I wonder if they will allow horse drawn carriages? Probably not since horses fart and we can’t have any more methane gas polluting the atmosphere. Yep. Move to California and live the dream!
If that is allowed to happen in my state of California then California will become one of the largest states to have the smallest population. . . . Gov. Gavin Nuisance is such a big Jackass because less population means less tax revenue. But then again, he’ll just raise taxes on the remaining dolts to offset the lost tax revenues. Communist control and the slaves obey!
RBC,
Yes, I can easily envision a number of Democrat run states banning the sale of gasoline and diesel within their borders by 2035 to force the population of their states to either switch to EVs, the limited mass transit options that exist primarily in their cities or rely on walking / bike riding to get around. While Newsom has stated you can keep your existing ICE vehicles if you wish, that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to purchase fuel to keep them running or not be hit by extremely high annual registration and road taxes to make their operation completely unaffordable for the average person.
The Democrat Party has always admired the draconian policies of communist governments, especially the old Soviet Union and Mao’s Cultural Revolution China. Molding societies to their will through onerous policies was always a standard go to favorite of all communist regimes.
The ban on gasoline and diesel could take a number of forms. Unaffordable state taxes applied to all gasoline and diesel sales within state to dry up demand. Something like a state tax of $15 to $20 a gallon added on top of the regular price should make filling up the standard car or truck completely unaffordable. The Democrat states could also create unafforadable state road use taxes to make travel by ICE vehicles prohibitive. Say something on the order of $1 to $2 dollars a mile should crush the average consumer’s budget. Special, new vehicle registration or license fees for ICE vehicles that make them unaffordable for the average person are also an option the Democrats will likely impose to force change. The list of punitive actions that the Democrat controlled states can impose is almost endless. So yes, you can in theory still “keep” your existing ICE vehicle, but you won’t be able to find fuel for it or be able to afford to drive it within Democrat state lines.
All this will of course drive inflation up even higher than it will already be by 2035 after years and years of ruinous socialist policies that will have already have transformed the United States into a third world nation.
Very, very well stated, Mr. Charles! I even enjoyed the added humor in describing this bleak, and worse, completely unnecessary state of affairs. These people are not only attempting to eliminate our mobility; they’re trying to eliminate OUR country…at least as we knew it. Again…well done!
Just like the bootleggers of old, people will drive across state lines in order to purchase what they want. California will keep regulating which will create a market for the cars that the rest of us do not want. The free market is not allowed to work like it should as long as the government gets involved.
Shelly
Love, love, love the sarcasm.
CA politicians should start now in setting the example, give up all their cars, no more flights around the world for meetings about climate change and all those vacations they take. They can also ask all their hollwood friends to do the same. Leadership my example!
Don’t get your hopes up. The corrupt, disgusting California politicians at every level will be exempt and able to purchase all the gas they want, just by producing their membership card in the Demorat
Party. Climb to the top of the highest point in this sinking Titanic, folks; it’s going to get worse.
RBC,
What an entertaining/sarcastic presentation regarding this issue. I don’t want to take up much space but New England might be a good harbinger of things to come. If the New England states went full electric vehicle use within current parameters, they are projected to need about 50% more electricity available than current use. Just one point out of many involving this green insanity.
Eh, for now at least, it’s mostly posturing. They will still allow the sale of used vehicles (hey, even if it’s only 1 day old its “used”). Additionally you will see car dealerships pop up all along just across the Nevada and Arizona borders (Oregon may follow suit banning gas powered cars so don’t count on that). You will also see a very healthy resale market where new cars are bought elsewhere, shipped to CA, and sold as used. CA will just look the other way for a while, probably a long while.
Eventually you will see a road use tax added to electricity used to charge vehicles (similar to what they add to propane if used to drive on roads) — but only after EV has been adopted large scale and the hit to gasoline taxes is starting to hurt. At that point you may see registration penalties and the like on gas vehicles to complete the EV adoption because they’ll make even more off of the EV road use taxes than they do the gasoline taxes (justified as the need to pay for installing all those charging stations and grid updates but will somehow stay high after those needs have passed).
Newsome wants to be President. Imagine the repercussions of that.
Well now, let’s think this though regarding the current amount of Gas Tax collected by California.
???? How do you think they’ll will replace That? Here’s a thought. The’ll raise your California State Taxes…AGAIN ???? Your Property Taxes… AGAIN. ???? But, you’ll surely be Happy in your little Socialist Utopia. Perhaps you’ll even be granted Free Air for your bicycle tires… but wait! Those Air pressure tanks we’re only available at Gas Stations. ????.. and all of those will be Gone… along with your Wealth & Freedoms. ????♂️
.
Great satire and all too true. A big thing overlooked is that every plastic and synthetic fiber will also disappear since they come from petroleum. Then consider that all manufacturing uses vast amounts of heat, heat produced by fossil fuel. It all stops if fossil fuels are banned.
MORE THAN DELUSIONAL FLAT OUT MORONS
The article was so well written, I don’t think I can add anything to it
It is amazing to witness just how stupid the residents of california have become… they voted for theses dorks making up this false utopia while Bill Gates is working to depopulate the globe by 90% down to his empirical number of 500,000,000 folks… Strangely though with that few of folks will bill still be able to get enough access to victims, underage children, to sexually abuse? Curious minds want to know!
How about just making the cars from pressed paper (is that Origami?), power them with throw-away engines, and let the Californians and Washingtonians drive them? Seems as practical as some of their suggestions
California was the state that offered great promise, home to unbridled opportunity and business success. What happened? Does it have to credit its spiraling down to the one party in charge? I believe they were called Democrats now; they behave as communists dictating the shutdown of the state, emergency powers based on a breakout of a flu virus created by the Gain of Function NIH “scientists” on the payroll of the United States taxpayers’ dime. The good news is that Dr. Fauci was able to export it to China and make a fortune while the world shut down in fear. Let’s avoid leadership roles being proposed by anyone in government that has never had to operate a business in the real world!! Let us return to the days of Laisse Faire and reduce government regulation as completely as possible. God Bless the state of Florida for having a governor that recognizes that businesses need to operate and limit dictating the regulations affecting their business.
Very entertaining. Applies to the old saying of ” If we don’t laugh, we’ll cry. ”
Hopefully Jesus will return before any of this happens if it ever does.
Everyone who moves out of California is a genius. Anyone who stays is a fool!
Thanks for keeping everyone updated Bobby.
I’m 81 yrs. old. I will have to get a 3-wheeled adult tricycle with a basket in back to hold my groceries. Of course, I can fill the basket with the two plastic bags of groceries $95.00 will buy. I will always have to keep my cell phone handy so I can call 911 when I have my weekly heart attack from pedaling my trike to the store.
Thanks ever so much Brandon and all the other Godless socialists in Washington who don’t give one jot about human life.
DOES ANY CIVILIZED AMERICAN HAVE ANY IDEA WHERE THIS HYPOCRISY ORIGINATES FROM?
Welcome to the filthy hippie generation Ii. We oldies know how well the first one worked out.
But stupid sheeple will just nod and go along.
FUC
The ‘C’ stands for Chinafornia.
My question is, are only electric and hydrogen-powered airplanes going to be allowed to land at LAX, SFO, and surely SAC?
The Left isn’t creating bad ideas by accident, their bad ideas are intentional. They need everything to fail to usher in their ruling reset.
I would add that they not only don’t care about you, but they’d rather you just drop dead already. Fear not, they feel the same way about all of us free thinking individual freedom lovers.
Our governor is a delusional jackass.
What are these California Politicians thinking?????
I think they have been in the Sun way too long.
I live in Washington where the demo*rats passed the law last winter to take effect 2030. Majority of the state does not agree with it because we lived where 1) it is impractical for the distances most of us travel especially the thousands of farmers and other ag businesses. 2) we don’t have the transit systems the ones that vote these demo*rats into office have. We are urban and rural – EV won’t work. I have a 2001 Prius that does not plug in – never has never will – BUT I have to pay $75 a year on my car tags to build charging stations. People of the state need to watch it because next the demo*rats will pass it so everyone has to pay the tax no matter what type of car you have.
About 5 counties in the state including the Puget Sound and Spokane areas are the ones that elect the demo*rats because they have the great population. They control the state and do not care about the rest of the state. It is the same in Oregon where the Portland Metro area and the two big college towns control the state.
The feds are still trying to clean up Hanford – what will all these polluting batteries disposal going to create? More Hanford’s is what. We already seeing that with windmill blades and generators.
It almost seems as an attempt to stir people’s minds in a different direction so they pay no attention to the real issues and disasters of today
Thank you for this article. Makes me wanna move to La La land. Cal. here i come. Kuyle L.
It will never fly. The ruling “elite” as usual have not considered the unintended consequences. Or maybe they have and don’t care. Every one commenting so far has also missed the point. That being, this is another example of the tiered legal system in this country today.The elimination of gasoline (petroleum) powered vehicles will only cause a minor inconvenience for the so called elite. They have money to spend on this insanity. The middle class will either leave California or suffer. Enough on the middle class. We all know what will happen to them. The people most hit will be those who are lower wage earners who have to use pick up truck or second hand car to get around for work. This group includes “illegals” everyone of color or those who have not made it to the middle class. This group will be devastated and unemployed. That will increase the level of unemployed and cost more for unemployment benefits. Of those now joining the unemployed,, many will wake up one morning and realize the grossly unbalanced impact this has on the people. People of color, primarily our black population will see this for what it is…a racist attack on a portion of the population. That is the reason for the failure of this move by California.
I am one who wants to gag anytime I see the “race card used”. But this time I thing the “shoe fits” and the repercussions will be justified. If you think the “summer riots” in Seattle, Portland and other west coast cities were bad, just wait on the upset over this moronic approach to the hoax of climate change this time. I predict the burning of everything associate with the elite of the state and the government. There will be a genera uprising and burning of the state because of the moronic move of the government of California and lemming states of Oregon and Washington.
What we’re seeing now didnt just incubate and hatch in the last five years. The people of the governors age had hippie parents who bought into every idiotic pipedream that came along in the sixties. Ideas that were thought radical then are basic dem planks today. As Chesterton said, people who stop believing in God dont enter a vacuous state of non belief in anything. Instead they adopt any trend that tickles their fancy. The commies had to wait till the ww2 gen died off . They were a counterbalance for decades. Welcome to the future.
CA is expecting brownouts this year already! If you add a couple of million EVs to the system, what will happen? The woke nuts will just tell you that you are limited to certain hours and certain mileage!
Being crazy has its downside. Lol.
Let’s put a “border fence” around CA so the idiots that elected the brainless bodies running that state can’t get away from the mess they created. We can move the import/export ports to southern and southeastern states.
We need a civil war. The earth worshipers have to be wiped out. They are trying to kill us. Kill them first.
Hysterical but so true. That’s what all this idiocy is – HYSTERICAL. WIPE OUT THE ENVIRONMENTALISTS NOW BECAUSE THEY ARE HYPOCRITES! EVERY SINGLE ONE OF ‘EM! This is just socialism wrapped up with a different bow and different name.
Tyranny, definition: cruel and oppressive government
Friendly message to the unelected bureaucrats that are doing Gavin Newsome’s bidding. Better think this through before announcing any drop dead deadlines to eliminate gasoline powered vehicles and closing down the gas stations.
It might be in your best interest to first build an electrical grid to accommodate the millions of electric cars, trucks, scooters, etc. that will be needed to replace the 30 million or so gas powered vehicles in California.
California has always been the hotbed of performance driving starting with the early hot rodders. They have a very large car crazy population of car enthusiasts who do not appreciate your efforts to ruin their hobby.I doubt that the voters will allow this idiocy or steroids to come to pass. These people are far more passionate about loving gas powered cars than you’ll ever be about your overpriced golf carts!
If you want to turn California into suburban Mexico keep on importing illegal immigrants to replace the hard working Californians who are leaving the state in droves….
There is way more fossil fuels used to make the batteries that power these cars and to charge these cars than the benefit in the short term of using them.
You can bet that politicians will all have the luxury of being driven around in gasoline powered limousines. I won’t hold my breath waiting to see the first battery powered armored limo.
I am excited about seeing all of those “good for me, but not for thee” politicians like Algor, Governor Nuisance, Obumer, the Clintoons, and President Bitme climbing into their private solar powered jets and flying into a cloud bank.
These self-important hypocrites will probably have huge fuel tanks behind their walled compounds, and certainly large stores of gasoline will be hidden somewhere close to their governor’s mansions. The behavior of Governor Nuisance and other Democrap governors during the lockdowns they imposed on the “little people” of their states is an excellent indication of what we can expect. Welcome to Animal Farm.
Not sure if the sarcasm advances the author’s position.
This article and the comments really made my day. It is a great feeling to have a good laugh over the lunacy that comes out of DC. I remember an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond where Frank’s driving was becoming hazardous and Ray made a comment about vehicles being made out of Nerf material…will it eventually come to that too? Really, do these DC clods really hear themselves talk when a stupid idea comes across their desk? Yes, I agree this is yet another tactic to screw with the American people and confuse the crap out of us. They forget though we are on to them!
MAGA 2024
This will change once we rid ourselves of this installed demented puppet regime who kowtows to the far left.
I am just upset as anyone but,the future of transportation in America according to the dims is mass monorail at 300 miles per hour and here it comes the introduction of 200 mile per gallon carberators that fuel injection replaced. EVs are just a way to detract from the real effort which is take over USA . Keep the patriots busy with junk ideas just like they did with Trump.We the good guys with white hats commit to violence become terrorist and face prison or worse.Democrats fake importance of november because they know the election is already stolen. IMO our focus must be to get vote out and protect it as it is being counted. Being thrown out while others rig election is a good reason for me to go to prison. Willing to fight to keep America great. Please remember anything voted by dems can be reversed.May God protect America and its future conservative leaders.